


Glimpses of Ourselves

by Kerkobitch



Category: Arrow (TV 2012)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-09-05
Updated: 2015-09-05
Packaged: 2018-04-19 04:33:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,785
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4732940
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kerkobitch/pseuds/Kerkobitch
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Laurel and Oliver talk about things he realized when he came back.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Glimpses of Ourselves

**Author's Note:**

> Hey it's me again. Just another small piece I wrote inspired by a small part of the Arrow S4 trailer. https://33.media.tumblr.com/96e099dee2a8450d756ff974f757d630/tumblr_nu6dq27QXE1u563huo2_400.gif
> 
> I know it's not Ollie she's looking at but I just love her face here. So I went with it.

It’s early, too early in fact, but she has to go to court today and left documents to review there. Laurel Lance has never in her life gone in without being 200% prepared and today was not going to be an exception. Her coffee was still too hot. The coffee in that place by the corner was always too hot but it was the best. She needed it to get through the day. Putting the passcode in she tried to push the door open but it didn’t budge. She forgot the passcode changes every day. Thinking the correct one she once again punched it in, pushed, and voilá!

Except someone was waiting for her behind the door. The attacker tried to grab her from behind but thinking quickly, elbowing him then threw her coffee all over his green hoodie. “Oliver?” “Laurel” he said in an angry tone. “Why the hell did you do that?” “I thought somebody was breaking in!” “With the passcode” she said sarcastically. “You missed it the first time; I thought somebody was using some sort of tech to get in.” “It’s early ok? I’m barely awake and now I don’t even have coffee to help thank you very much. I’m also pretty sure Cisco made the security here extremely tight. No tech is getting anyone in here.” He looked at her annoyed then walked across the room taking his hoodie off and got a towel. She looked at him in consideration and realized an air mattress and a bag full of clothes were right next to him.

“What are you doing in here so early anyway?” she heard him ask. Snapping out of her reverie she said, “I... left some documents here that I need for court… Ollie is everything ok? Why are you sleeping here?” He looked away with a serious face, “I was training late and decided to crash here.” She looked at him in disbelief, “And I suppose the clothes in the bag are there because you plan to train too late for the rest of the week?” He sighed, “I don’t wanna talk about it, least of all with you.” “What is that supposed to mean?” “It means, stay out of my business.” He was clearly in bothered, “Wow… ok fine.”

She walked across the room to one of the desks looking for the folder she needed. He sighed again, “I’m sorry. I’m a bit on edge. Felicity and I broke up” he said his tone significantly less harsh. At this she looked up shocked. “Ollie I’m so sorry, what happened?” “Last week happened.” “What do you mean? Did you do something stupid last week?” she asked. “Why do you immediately assume I did something wrong?” “Ollie I’ve been in a relationship with you. It’s always your fault.” He chuckled a little bit humorlessly, “yeah I suppose you’re right. But this is different. It’s not something I did but something I am.” She stood up from the desk and walked over to him, “What’s wrong?”  
He looked up at her and let out a breath, “the bank.” “The bank?” “You went in the room where the bomber was, remember?” “Yeah, so?” she didn’t understand where he was going with this at all. “The bomber was suicidal. He didn’t care if he blew you up with him.” “He was crazy Oliver, he believed in this supposed cause his boss indoctrinated him with.” He looked at her again, “that’s not the point.” “Would you get to it then?” she asked. He chuckled again but it reached his eyes this time, “you knew you could die and you went in anyway.” “Well, we needed someone to distract him while you and Thea got the people out. Or Felicity figured out the exact code to disable the bomb, through the device Diggle had connected in it” she said still not getting what the hell he was recapping last week for. “Yeah but he could’ve blown you up with him any moment.” “Well, he didn’t” she said. “He would have, had I not decided that letting the people out through that room was a better distraction” he continued smiling. It was her turn to look annoyed, “I was doing just fine Ollie, and you risked all those people. You were an idiot doing that. Ah now I get it. Felicity dumped you because you’re an idiot.” “No. You see that’s when I understood I can never leave this life behind. After we got the guy, I looked at you standing in the middle while hordes of people ran out for their lives and it hit me. This, the Black Canary is who you are and this is who I am.”

She stared at him in awe for a couple of moments, “Oliver you are making no sense. Are you telling me Felicity broke up with you because you want to be who you are?” “Yes and no. You see, all of the nonsense from last year, me fighting you so hard for taking this mantle, joining Ra’s, leaving Starling city, that was all me trying to run away from it. I thought becoming this person was bad. When I first started this, I murdered a lot of people, but I failed in the most important part, which was stopping Merlyn.” He looked right into her eyes, “I couldn’t stop him and Tommy died.” She looked right back and took his hand, “Oliver that was not your fault, I too blamed myself and blamed you, but that was all a way to look into making sense of the tragedy that had happened.” “I know that now but that’s not all. I then decided that this was something I had to do but something that was a burden to atone for failing. So I did. I changed my tactics but I still felt it was wrong. I have made so many mistakes, mistakes that led to my mother dying, Thea becoming a puppet in Merlyn’s sick games. The burden became a boulder in my back and I resented it so much I became erratic and nonsensical. Everything that happened with Ra’s, I hurt everyone I love. ” She was speechless; things were starting to clear up. “Felicity and I fought a lot during that time. I think she believes in this thing we do because she loved me. But she always expected there to be an end, and at that time I did too. I hated myself so much for everything. She and I were on the same page.”

She listened intently. This was so personal in a way that Oliver had never been with her. They have known each other for so long. At their cores they both know who the other is and they trust each other intrinsically. But Oliver had never opened up his mind to her, this was different.

Oliver looked up and sighed, “When we left I thought I was happy. For months we had a perfectly normal life. We had small jobs and it was… nice.” She frowned. He kept going, “I went on long runs, and to let off steam worked out a lot. Maybe too much but I didn’t realize it and I don’t think she did either. We lived in this bubble but I am sure now that it would’ve exploded soon had we not gotten out of there. When we came back she said I seemed different. But it wasn’t until the bank that we could put our finger on it. I looked at you and she walked in with Diggle. She recognized the look on my face. When I saw her I knew she knew.” “Ollie I’m so sorry.” She paused, “I honestly don’t know what to say other than I am here for you. Why aren’t you staying with Thea? Do you hide this stuff before we get here every night?” we stared at each other for a minute. Then burst out laughing. “I am ridiculous, I know. I just didn’t want anyone to know yet.” She looked at him and smiled, “always Mr. I-don’t-need-help.” “I will talk to Thea today, I promise.”  
“I really need to get going, I need to go over those documents, and get coffee.” She stood up and gave him a look. “You can always count on me Ollie, I’m sorry about all of this but I am happy you’re finding yourself in the middle of the mess.” “Yeah, me too” he said scratching his head. His eyes looked tired but she could see a flicker of something familiar he always kept in him. He would be fine. “I’ll see you tonight.” With that she left thinking she was grateful that they would always have each other. That was a constant she was very comfortable with.

 

(Oliver stared at the door from which Laurel had just exited. He didn’t mean to tell her all of that. But he also didn’t tell her of the other realization he had had that day at the bank either. “If something happens, tell my father I love him” were the last words she had said before going into the room with the bomber. Words cannot describe the panic he felt in that moment. The kind he has felt before but is also uniquely reserved for her. He had forgotten what that feeling was. Anger and fear had replaced it most of the time when he saw her putting on that costume.

He thought about it, he wouldn’t risk the lives of these people if he wasn’t sure. Felicity assured him she was less than a minute away from cracking the code so he did it. With the help of Thea, they conducted the people through as a distraction. It was what felt like half a second but it was enough time to make the man turn his head and for him to move quickly enough to apprehend without risking the bomb getting activated by the bomber.

The look on Laurel’s face. She was mad, but most of all she was sure. He saw it. She had never been more sure of anything in her life. He then realized she really did have it. Even if he hadn’t let the people in she would have succeeded. The word beautiful comes up short to describe the woman in the costume looking at him. In more than one way because in that moment he knew who he was, he knew who she was, and he knew they would do this together for the rest of their lives. Today was not the day he told her yet. But soon enough the day would come. He couldn’t wait for the rest of their lives to properly start.)

**Author's Note:**

> Please be kind. Keep in mind I don't have a beta. Leave a comment if you please. I'd appreciate your thoughts.


End file.
